I’ve never told this story publicly, but I figure it’s long enough ago, and Apple’s interest in this Apple II stuff is behind us, so what the heck.

A few years ago we got a license to distribute the DOS 3.3 System Master on-line, which we hadn’t had before. So the disks were mailed to us, straight from Apple Licensing.

So I get this really nice package from Apple with the nice white disk envelopes and labels and stuff. And just to make sure everything’s kosher, I boot the System Master that they sent us.

Well, it boots into DOS 3.3… and up comes an old copy of Locksmith, the ancient Pirate’s Favorite in the heady days of the DOS 3.3 Apple II world.

I’m really not kidding. I looked over the disk carefully and that’s all it was… a copy of Locksmith. On a write-protected, Apple labelled disk that Apple Licensing sent straight to us.

What’s doubly funny is the original Locksmith was copy protected, so this means that somewhere in Apple’s history, someone either “cracked” this or accepted a pirate copy.

When we got it we realized these people had no idea what the heck they were doing when it came to Apple II stuff. So we quietly uploaded another copy of the DOS 3.3 System Master we had lying around, and that’s what’s up there in A2 today.

I wonder if I still have that disk? I’m pretty sure it’s buried somewhere in my huge collection of 5.25 disks, gathering dust.

Share it around:

Like this:

While looking through some of my old notes today, I came across this old message. I had said I would include it in my history, and it got filed away and misplaced. Well, now that I’ve recovered it, I had better keep my sixteen year old promise and post it.

Not all of his statements are necessarily correct; I don’t think the Apple II was the first micro to use a disk drive. However, it may have been the first that affordably did so.

Years from now, when Power PCs are considered low-end machines, and Macs and Pentiums have long since been forgotten, I hope they’ll remember the Apple II.

What the Apple II was all about:

The Apple II was about computing in color: the first computer with built-in color video. The Mac tried to make black & white cool, but it almost died on the vine for trying. Now that every computer uses color, except for the cheap or light weight, will they remember that the Apple II was the first one?

The Apple II was about the speed of disk drives: the first micro-computer to use a disk drive. Remember cassette tapes? Could it have been theat they might today be using hard cassette drives, if not for Woz and his Disk ][?

The Apple II was about fast startups and low memory overhead: the only computer ever to use sensible floppy disk-based operating system. DOS and ProDOS required nothing more than the juice from the plug and a closed drive door to get up and running from a floppy. ‘Nough said!

The Apple II was about business sense: the first spreadsheet that lit the business world on fire. After Lotus and Microsoft knock each other out fighting over this crown, will they remember that it was Visicalc on the Apple II that first blew everyone away?

The Apple II was about integrated applications: when Mac’s OS and Windows are long gone, will they remember that it was AppleWorks that showed the way?

The Apple II was about losing yourself in a computer game: the greatest software was born on the Apple II. Ultimas I-V were created on the Apple II. Wizardry was born on the Apple II. Sierra On-Line’s first game was programmed on an Apple II. Will they remember?

What the Apple II was all about was breaking open the door to computing for the rest of us and giving us access to this most powerful and wonderful of pursuits.

We will never forget.

Clyde

That’s what this site is all about. Thanks for the sentiment, Clyde; it was well spoken.